Delhi, May 26, 2020: Sakshi – a rights-based NGO, working towards preventing child sexual abuse, has launched a music video ‘It Has To Be’ under its digital campaign #MakeHomeASafeSpace, which brings to light the safety issues of children during the down. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, when every individual is required to stay at home for ‘safety’ purposes, it becomes important to make home an actual “ safe space” for children, especially when one out of two children in India, have experienced sexual abuse before the age of 18.
The music video is written and conceived by Sanjiv Sharma, the producer of Indian Idol, Comedy Circus and several other shows, and an active board member of Sakshi. He recently took to Twitter to express gratitude to notable celebrities such as Sonakshi Sinha, R Madhavan, Manoj Bajpayee, Neena Gupta, Sonu Nigam and Pooja Batra for being a part of the campaign. In the video, the celebrities are urging the audience to take action to prevent Child Abuse and make homes a safe space, through the hook line “Let’s do what it takes. Let’s do what we can.” The video was posted by Sonakshi Sinha through her Instagram page and Twitter handles and has received over 2,97,000 views so far. The music video also urges the viewer to click a link in the description where the audience can actively participate by 1) Watching a video of the work that Sakshi is doing 2) Registering for a Free Webinar 3) Engaging with the work 4) Donating to make a home safe.
On the launch of the video, Sanjiv Sharma, Board Member, Sakshi said, “I am lucky to have worked on both, Brand Building and Pure Content in my professional career. I feel blessed that I can put this expertise that I’ve acquired over four decades to the meaningful work we do at Sakshi. I feel even more blessed that my friends from the media and entertainment world have joined for the ‘It Has To Be’ music video, a part of the #MakeHomeASafeSpace digital campaign.”
On her participation in ‘It Has To Be’ video, Neena Gupta, veteran Bollywood actress said, “Sanjiv Sharma and I have worked together in a show – Ladies Special. I was happy to learn that someone from my fraternity was spending all this time to work on a cause that really needs the attention. From him, I learnt that Sakshi has done pioneering work in gender equality and child sexual abuse in India. I am really happy to support Sakshi in this effort and join them to help build a safer world,” says Neena Gupta, veteran Bollywood actress.
Talking about the campaign, Smita Bharti, Executive Director, Sakshi, “While we all understand that a safe space is marked by empathy and non-judgmental acceptance, it is also important to note that these are spaces where you should not have to explain the harm you have experienced, where your voice is heard and has meaning and your sense of self remains intact. For Sakshi, equality is the founding principle upon which all human rights are built. Our core focus is to create a right-based approach with peace-building initiatives to bring about sustainable social change. In the last couple of years, we have very strategically expanded our relationships and partnership to bring on communication experts, who can help us deliver this message.”
Sakshi, also organises free webinars every Sunday at 3:00 p.m. in English and Hindi languages, every alternate week. It is an immersive and engaging experience aimed to equip the masses to Prevent, Prohibit and Resolve Child Sexual Abuse.
MUSIC VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh80L9Jc__g
